Fingerprint authentication systems are well known and typically used in single level secure environments to either permit or deny access to physical spaces (e.g., buildings, interior rooms, parking garages, cabinets, and/or safes), equipment (e.g., computers and/or servers), or software/data (e.g., email, encrypted files, secure software applications, secure folders, and/or secure websites). Such authentication systems may be wired or wireless and typically include a touchpad, a sensing mechanism, control software, and memory. One such system as embodied in a wireless fob is marketed by Privaris Inc. of Charlottesville, Va. at the website www.privaris.com/authentication_fingerprint.html. Most conventional systems sense the fingerprint of one finger or one finger at a time (for multiple fingers); while other less popular systems sense multiple fingers simultaneously.
When desiring access to a protected space, piece of equipment, or software application, the user places the palm-side, distal phalanx of a finger, such as the thumb, onto the touchpad, and the sensing mechanism scans the valleys and ridges in the surface of the user's finger to detect the fingerprint, and the control software compares the detected fingerprint to fingerprints previously stored in memory. If a match occurs, permission to access is granted; otherwise, permission is denied and the authentication process must be repeated.
There is an opportunity to apply fingerprint detection technology to multi-level secure environments, whereby access to different levels of the environment has correspondingly different authentication requirements. Additionally, there is an opportunity to provide user feedback during the fingerprint detection process.
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